The present invention relates to flexible electrical conductor cables suitable for high temperature installations.
Solid oxide fuel cells, along with other high temperature fuel cells, typically operate at temperatures well in excess of 500° C., and often in the range of 800° C. or higher. It is a challenge to find electrical conducting cables for use in such a high temperature environment which have an adequately low electrical resistance, resist thermal degradation at such elevated temperatures, and which may survive repeated thermal cycling from ambient temperatures to operating temperatures.
Several commercially available high temperature cables do not perform satisfactorily. For example, Radix MCS™ Furnace Cables comprise a solid or stranded nickel core which is sheathed with an insulator and protective cover. The insulator comprises a braided mica layer and a braided ceramic fibre layer. The protective cover comprises a braided stainless steel layer. These cables are suitable for high temperature AC application but when used with a DC power source such as a fuel cell, they demonstrate unacceptably high voltage drops. Other combinations of conducting cores and braided or smooth stainless steel sheaths have been similarly unsuccessful.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a high temperature electrical conductor cable which mitigates the difficulties of the prior art.